20 perfect Halloween costume ideas for families

A classic group Halloween costume, your family can’t go wrong with dressing as The Addams Family. The staples are Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, and Pugsley, but you can choose your favorites from the rest of the clan. You can even use props for certain characters, like Thing and Cousin Itt.  

Actual cops and robbers aren’t so cute, but a Halloween version sure is. It’s an easy costume that you can put together at the last minute. Just get some cop costumes at the nearest costume shop and dress your robbers in striped shirts and masks. 

A whole family of supers! Your family will have a blast dressing as The Incredibles for Halloween, and you don’t have to spend a fortune to make these costumes happen. With some red jumpsuits, black briefs, masks, and some printed logos, your family can be Pixar’s super family. 

Having your entire family dress as Lego people for Halloween is a great option if you’re not super into dressing up. All you need is Lego heads or masks (and maybe some hands, if you’re committed). Otherwise you can wear your regular clothes. 

If your family dresses as Mystery Inc. from Scooby-Doo for Halloween, there’s a chance there will be others wearing the same costumes. But that’s all part of the fun. This group Halloween costume is especially fun if your family has a dog. 

For a more out-of-the-box Halloween costume, dress as Jack in the Box … and other fast food restaurants. Everyone can dress as their favorite chain, using the logos or mascots as templates. Think one Ronald McDonald, one Wendy, one Colonel Sanders, etc. 

The world of Nintendo has dozens of iconic characters to choose from. Have everyone in your family choose their favorite character to dress as for Halloween. Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong are just a few great options. 

Seriously, having a theme and letting everyone choose how they want to approach that theme is one of the best ways to go about dressing for Halloween as a family. There are lots of breakfast food costumes available online. One person can be eggs, another bacon, someone else cereal. There are loads of options. 

If your family is small, you can dress as the most important characters in SpongeBob SquarePants: SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward. But the more people you have, the more characters you can add: Mr. Krabs, Sandy, Plankton, Mrs. Puff, Pearl. You can even dress up one of your devices as Karen. 

If your kids are into animals, have everyone in your family go as their favorite animal. Gain some bonus points by letting your kids pick which animal you’re going to go as. 

Dressing as characters from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is easy. Have one of the adults be Willy Wonka, and the rest can the children chosen to come to the factory. Just make sure there’s a Charlie and an Oompa Loompa. 

For a spookier family Halloween costume, have everyone dress as their favorite mythical creature. Your group can have a mermaid, a fairy, a vampire, a werewolf, Bigfoot, or any other creature of myth. 

Dressing as the Peanuts for Halloween is a breeze. There’s a chance you already have most, if not all, of what you need at home. And if not, the pieces are simple to find or to fashion from existing garments. 

Dressing as a shark attack is a fun concept costume, especially for a small family. Have one person be the victim, one person the shark, and one person the lifeguard. This costume also gives you the opportunity to use fake blood on Halloween, which is hard to resist. 

Plenty of individuals have gone as Dorothy, Glinda, and the Wicked Witch of the West for Halloween, but it’s also a great group costume. If you want a more modern approach, you can opt for Wicked-specific characters instead. 

Another fun generic costume is a rock and roll band. Your group can include a lead singer, a keyboardist, a guitarist, and a drummer, and there are plenty of other instruments you can assign to your family members if needed. 

Alice in Wonderland is another movie that translates well to group Halloween costumes. Make sure your family has an Alice, but beyond that you’ve got lots of directions you can take. Bonus points if you pass out cookies that say “Eat Me” to trick-or-treaters instead of candy. 

The Disney heroes get their day in the sun enough. For Halloween, lean into the villainry of it all and have everyone in your family dress as their favorite Disney villain. It’s a fun way to be bad without actually being bad. Jafar, Gaston, Cruella de Vil, and Maleficent are just a few of your options. 

Your family will have a blast dressing as Wreck-It Ralph characters for Halloween. Make sure you have a Ralph, a Vanellope, and a Fix-It Felix, and let your creativity soar for the rest of the costumes. 

Toy Story characters are great Halloween costumes for families, especially if more than one family is teaming up for the holiday. Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Jesse, Bo Peep, Slinky Dog, Rex, Hamm, Mr. Potato Head, Mrs. Potato Head, Barbie, and Ken all make for fun costumes.